Simplify the following expression: $y = \dfrac{-5q - 7}{8q + 5} + \dfrac{q + 1}{8q + 5}$
Since the expressions have the same denominator we simply combine the numerators: $y = \dfrac{-5q - 7 + q + 1}{8q + 5}$ Combine like terms: $y = \dfrac{-4q - 6}{8q + 5}$